“Whistle Peak is pop music in disguise and experimentation at its core. It is music that takes you on a journey of the imagination, inhabiting fantastical lands while drawing from life experience. It is the particular phrased in the universal. It is children’s stories told by grown men. The music is upbeat and hypnotic, pulling you closer with each listen and surprising you with small amulets layered beneath continuous melody. Whistle Peak’s style combines folk and electronic music, blending synthetic and acoustic instrumentation with songs of love and loss, joy and darkness. Not to say these boys are downers, rather their songs are quite optimistic and redemptive, bringing a small smile to man, woman and child alike. Chill out, strap on some ear muffs and enter a world where nature rules and men and women are entranced in dream-filled slumber.”…

“Here’s an inventive songwriter who understands how to use retro sounds as a tool, not a crutch. Although Matt Duncan’s soulful (and very well-produced) Beacon sounds like it could have been recorded in the early ’70s with it’s nimble, defined bass parts and close-miked drum sound, the group’s personal stamp is inked with tracks like “Puritan Heart” and “Beacon.” – Tyler Kane PASTE…

“Chelsey Nicole is a Pittsburgh-based blues, soul and R&B singer whose musical style is inspired by the heavy horns of New Orleans just as much as the raw, lonesome Stella guitar. Rooted in unfiltered emotions and classic vibes, Chelsey’s music is a smooth blend of familiar and fresh tones. The Northside Vamps act as more than merely a backing band as they not only hold the throwback atmosphere together but they punch it through into today’s world. Composed of varied Steel City jazz and blues musicians from bands such as Wreck Loose and Black Coffee, the group as a whole effortlessly employs timeless lyrics and melodies to exude a natural air of nostalgia for a sound that has never faded away.”…

“Us and Us Only is a sharp combination of sleek indie rock with a hint of folk styling. Their songs contain a dichotomous divide between crunchy guitar riffs and smooth violins, but the two coalesce with brilliant results. Vocalist Kinsey Matthews seamlessly weaves his tumbling melodies into the instrumentation, drawing as much attention to his heartfelt lyricism as there is to the grandiose arrangements.” – Grant Golden PASTE…

Take three young siblings; one, a horn player; another, a guitarist/writer; and the last, a drum lord. Now, add to the mix two more heart throbs, equipped with keys, enthusiastic vocals, and of course a bodacious, booming bass…

Trippy, psychedelic and groovy would just cover half of Thee Open Sex’s most recent and self-titled LP. Its the group’s third since 2009 and is extremely tight and cohesive—just like its live performances.

Sugary and nostalgic Baltimore synth-pop. A mix of influences from the 50s and 80s. An extremely accessible sound that will please twee-ginas and hipsters alike… read more ➜

For the last seven years, Rodeo Ruby Love has tried to become synonymous with Indiana: honest, hardworking, non-assuming and a little bit behind the times. The songs are rooted in the pop-country radio and church hymns that shaped founding member Zachary Melton’s childhood, while the energy and passion bloomed from the central Indiana hardcore scene…

Nick Tolford & Company are a seven-piece rock ‘n’ roll band from Columbus, Ohio. A virtual who’s who of the Columbus rock scene, members of the band have played in The Slide Machine, Church of the Red Museum, El Jesus de Magico, Brainbow…

we were all born in a bathtime suicide mission. nothing was left but a pair of sunglasses that are still bleeding to this day. at the stroke of midnight you can hear them sing out of desperation…

“Born out of the Industrial skeleton that is Buffalo, NY. Aircraft first began writing music in 2011. They are composed of musicians who have been active in the Buffalo music scene, in many different ways, for years. Aircraft’s music embodies the rust belt atrophy that surrounds it: The songs draw heavily on structures and textures of 60s pop music…

Buffalo, NY’s The Tins are a three piece that craft “tight, masterfully layered jams that build and fold into honest, captivating tracks.”(The Recommender) Keyboard player and vocalist Mike Santillo, drummer Dave Muntner…

A young band from Columbus, Ohio led by singer-songwriter and multi instrumentalist Zac Little. The group utilizes a wide range of instrumentation (violin, mandolin, dulcimer, Turkish Baglama, floor percussion) with the more contemporary elements such as synthesizers and electric guitars to create a unique merging of rustic and modern…

Following a spur-of-the-moment cross-country trip with a pair of fiery European girls, Vikesh Kapoor left school for a brief yet inspiring stint as a mason’s apprentice. The America he had previously known resided narrowly between his childhood home in rural Pennsylvania and the New England university he left home for. Alongside his parents’ own immigrant struggles…

When musicologists of the future look back to find the missing link between the avant-jazz and synth rock of the early 21st century and the hybrid sounds that have yet to reach our contemporary ears…

WINKIE is a Brooklyn based duo creating dark, distorted electronic gaze music…

Soft Cat carry quite the namesake, their gentle rhythms and brightly orchestrated folk music can easily be as comforting and as therapeutic as cozying up tight and engulfing yourself with every emotion possible…

Low-key but with a sinister edge at times, Gold and the Rush’s brand of roots-based, alt-country rock is a hypnotic hybrid of old and new. Supported by a tight rhythm section…

On the strength of their sound alone — a sound powered by Stones grooves, Jet rock hooks and harmonies all their own — The Blackboard Nails have toured the United Kingdom twice, including a stint at Liverpool’s renowned Sound City Festival, and they’ve recorded with producer Kato Khandwala (The Pretty Reckless, Paramore, Blondie). That session yielded the band’s first single, “Slow Down,” a midtempo romp whose first line says it all: “You need another man in your bed/like a hole …

Mostly the part that makes slightly honest fuzzy folk pop on the computer with poorly constructed 60’s Sears harmony guitars. It’s also the part that says a song can be whatever it wants to be, that a song neither carries nor respects preconceived notions. It’s the part that thinks CDs should come as Venus fly traps and music itself should be immediate and free…